Tobacco-manipulating apparatus



Nov. 1, 1966 A J, E, Mol-'ams ETAL 3,282,270

TOBACCO-'MANIPULATING APPARATUS www4/KAM A TTOR/Vff;

Nov. l, 1966 J. E. MoRRls ETAL 3,282,270

` TOBACCO-MANIPULATING APPARATUS Original Filed Feb. 2, 1961 y 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Wm, a/MMW A T TORNEE Nov. 1, 1966 VJ. E. MORRIS ETAL TOBACCO-MANIPULATING APPARATUS Original Filed Feb. 2, 1961 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 VENTO/as United States Patent O 1 Claim. (Cl. LS1-s4) This application 'is a continuation of our copending application Serial No. 861,659, tiled February 2, 1961, now abandoned.

This invention concerns improvements in or relating to continuous rod cigarette-making machines in which a tobacco -iiller is conveyed on an air-pervious 4conveyor and is held to the conveyor by a iiow of air through the conveyor.

An example of such apparatus is disclosed in U.S. application Serial No. 738,805 (now Patent No. 3,080,965 issued April 24, 1962). Additionally, in that application the tobacco filler is formed on the -air-pervious conveyor, which is in the form of a band. Particles of tobacco are introduced into a passage extending to and having a substantial dimension in the dircetion of the moving conveyor band yand the particles are impelled towards the band to build up lthereon to form a continuous tobacco iiller by means of a stream of air which ows through the passage and lthe conveyor.

With such apparatus the air may remove tobacco dust from the filler, together with some short particles of tobacco which are intended to be included in the term tobacco dust in this speciiication.

According to the present invention there is provided a continuous rod cigarette-making machine comprising means to form a continuous tobaco filler, air-pervious conveyor means to convey the tobacco ller lengthwise, means to pass air through the filler and the conveyor means to hold the filler thereto, means to extract tobacco dust from the air after it has passed through the Iiller, and means for conveying the dust to the region of form-ation of the iiller and for intrdou-cing it into `the iller at said region.

When the tobacco-manipulating apparatus comprises a trimming device to remove surplus tobacco from the formed filler -as it is held to the conveyor means the dust may be introduced into the portion of the filler which is retained on the conveyor means after trimming. The means to form the continuous tobacco iiller may comprise a passa-ge extending to and having a substantial dimension in the `direction of the conveyor means so that air passing through the conveyor means initially passes through the passage, and means to `introduce cut tobacco int-o the passage to be impelled towards the conveyor means by the air flowing through the passage and build up on the conveyor means to form .the continuous tobacco ller. In this case the m-eans for conveying 4the dust may introduce it into the passage. If a trimming device as mentioned above is provided the dust may be introduced into the portion of the iiller which is retained on the conveyor means after trimming by being introduced into the passage at a suitable location.

Valve means may be provided which are adjustable between a iirst position in which the dust is directed into the means for conveying it t-o the iiller 'and Ia second position in which the dust is directed away from said means, e.g. the dust :may be directed to a dust-extracting cyclone.

Control means may be provided automatically to adjust said valve means to the rst position when the means to form the continuous tobacco iiller is operating and to the second position when the means to form the continuous tobacco ller is not operating but the means to pass air through the conveyor means is still operating.

One embodiment of apparatus made and operating in accordance with the present invention will now be described, by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 shows, in side elevation and with parts broken away, means tor forming a continuous tobacco filler in a continuous rod cigarette-making machine;

FIGURE 2 shows in simplified form, and with parts broken away, an end View as seen from the right-hand side of FIGURE 1 of the apparatus shown in FIGURE 1, together with a diagrammatic representation of air supply means;

FIGURE 3 shows the dust extractor appearing in the right portion of FIGURE 2 on an enlarged scale and in elevation, with parts broken away and shown in section; and

FIGURE 4 shows diagrammatically an electrical circuit for controlling the operation of the dust extractor.

The apparatus show-n in FIGURES 1 and 2 forms part of a continuous rod cigarette-making machine which is basically similar to the machines disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 3,030,965 issued April 24, 1962, and application Serial No. 20.683 iiled April 7, 1960, now abandoned'.

Referring -to FIGURES 1 and 2, the apparatus comprises a perforated metal conveyor band 1 arranged to move, in the direction shown by the arrow, beneath a suction chamber 2 which draws air upwardly through the convey-or band.

A passage formed by side walls 3 and end walls 4 and 5, and having a substantial dimension between the walls 4 and 5 in the direction of the conveyor band 1, has its lower end close to and above a perforated plate 37 and extends upwardly to the band 1. Air is supplied to the lower end of the passage through the perforated plate 37 and the arrangement is such that air iiows up the pass-age in a continuous stream at high velocity. Particles of cut tobacco are fed into the passage and are impelled upwardly at high velocity to the band 1 by the `air stream, and build up on the band to form a filler.

Both the band 1 and the suction chamber 2 extend a substantial distance beyond the end wall 4 of the passage, that is to the left of the wall 4, a-s viewed in FIGURE 1, and air is drawn through that part of the band from atmosphere. Thus the tobcaco filler which has been built up on the band i-n the passage is conveyed by being held suctionally on the underside of the band 1. A trimming devi-ce is provided to remove surplus tobacco from the tobacco ller. This device comprises a pair of cooperating discs 7, one of which is visible in FIGURE 1, arranged beneath the band 1. Beyond the trimming device the band 1 extends over a paper web 8, on to which the tobacco iiller is led while still held suctionally on the band 1; when suction is cut off from the band, the iiller is released and is conveyed by the paper web which is wrapped around it to form a continuous cigarette r-od.

Particles of tobacco are introduced into the passage by means of a carded conveyor drum 10, a card-ed refuser roller 11 and a picker roller 13. The particles of tobacco are turned through approximately a right angle by means of air drawn through a perforated roller 16 and through a duct 15. Curved baille plates are located at the inlet to the duct 15 to evenly distribute the air ow over the width of the duct.

As described in more detail in U.S. application Serial No. 20,683 tiled April 7, 1960, now abandoned, a suction pump 23 draws air from the duct 15 and discharges it through a diiiuser 28 to atmosphere towards the perforated plate 37. A further suction pump 32 draws air from the suction chamber 2 and passes it through a manifold 34 to a battery of dust-extracting cyclones 35 to atmosphere. A dust extractor 25 is provided in the manifold leading to the suction pump 23 and dust extracted thereby is conveyed by pipe 36 to the manifold 33 leading to the inlet of suction pump 32.

On the portion of the conveyor band 1 which at any instant is above the passage tobacco will be held on its underside and will build up in depth from adjacent the end wall where the first particles of tobacco are deposited on the band to where the band moves away from the passage at end wall 4 where the tobacco filler will be of full depth.

The air drawn through the tobacco and the band 1 will tend to remove obacco dust from the tobacco filler. This may be considered disadvantageous by some cigarette manufacturers and accordingly means are provided to return some at least of the dust thus extracted to the tobacco filler.

For this purpose, see FIGURE 3, a dust extractor 39 is provided in the manifold 34 leading from the outlet of suction pump 32 to the battery cyclones 35. The dust.

extractor 39 is similar to the dust extractor 25 and consists essentially of a louvred cone 40. As the `dust is heavier than the air carrying it, the dust has a greater momentum and therefore cannot easily change its direction of motion to flow through the louvres of the cone 40. The dust therefore passes through the funnel 41, together with som'e of the air, whereas most of the air passes through the louvres of the cone and continues along the manifold 34.

The funnel 41 is mounted on a member 42, which is pivoted at 43, so that the funnel constitutes a valve means which is adjustable between a first position, shown in FIGURE 3 in full lines, and a second position, shown in dotted lines. Referring to FIGURE 4, at its right-hand end the member 42 is pivoted to the armature 44 of a solenoid device, the energizing winding of which is shown at 45, and at its left-hand end is loaded by a spring 46 in the opposite direction to the force exerted by the solenoid when energized.

In line with the funnel 41 when in the first position is a pipe 47 which is fitted into pipe 43 which leads, as seen in FIGURES 1 and 2, to the bottom of the passage, protruding through the perforated plate 37.

The top of the funnel 41 is of smaller diameter than the pipe 47 to ensure that all dust fiowing through the funnel passes into the pipe 47 when the funnel is in the first position. When in the second position the funnel is directed to one side of the pipe 47.

FIGURE 4 shows diagrammatically a circuit arrangement by which the adjustment of the funnel 41 is controlled automatically in relation to the operation of the machine.

The motor for driving the conveyor band 1, the drum and rollers 11 and 13 is indicated at 50, and its source of electricity supply at 51, and its operating switch at 52. Similarly, the motor for driving the suction pumps 23 and 32 is indicated at 60 together with its source of electricity 61 and operating switch 62. The source of electricity for energizing the armature 44 of the solenoid is shown at 70. This circuit contains in series two switches 53 and 63. Switch 53 is ganged with switch 52 and is arranged to be open when switch S2 is closed, and vice versa and switch 63 is ganged with switch 62 and is arranged to be open when switch 62 is op'en, and vice versa.

The apparatus operates in the following manner. When the machine is operating normally the switches 52 and 62 will be closed and therefore switch 63 will be closed, but as switch 53 will be open the solenoid will be de-energized and thus the spring will move the funnel 41 to the first position and tobacco dust extracted from the air owing in manifold 34 will be directed into the pipe 47 and conveyed by the pipe 48 to the entry of the passage. The dust will thus be carried up the passage and deposited on the tobacco already on the band 1. As shown, the outlet of pipe 48 is located about one third of the width of the passage from the wall 4 so that the dust will be deposited on the band 1 on top of tobacco constituting about two thirds of the depth of the tobacco filler. The `remainder of the tobacco to form the filler is deposited on the dust as the band continues to move toward the end wall 4. As the filler moves beyond the wall 4 the air passing through it tends to draw the dustitowards the conveyor band l. Approximately one third of the tobacco filler will be removed as surplus by the trimming device 7 and a substantial proportion of the dust will then tend to be in the mid portion of the trimmed filler.

If it is desired to stop production of the cigarette rod temporarily the motor 50 is stopped but the motor 60 driving the pumps 23 and 32 is left running to hold the tobacco filler on to the conveyor band 1. If dust extracted from the air by th'e dust extractor 39 is directed into the pipe 48 when the band 1 is stationary, this dust will be incorporated in the portion of the tobacco liller which is stationary above the outlet of the pipe 48 in the passage. This portion of the filler will tend to become unduly heavy due to the concentration in it of dust removed from the remainder of the filler and this may cause a hold up in the filler when th'e band 1 again moves forward.

However, it is arranged, as described above, that switch 53 is closed when switch 52 is opened to stop motor 5t). As switch 63 is also closed the winding 44 of the solenoid will be energized and the armature 44 will be drawn downwards, so moving the member 42 clockwise so that the funnel 41 occupies the second position and thus the dust extracted by the dust extractor is directed to the battery 35 of cyclones. Thus, the switches 53 and 63 and solenoid components 44 and 45 constitute control means to adjust the funnel 41 automatically to the first position when both motors 50 and 6d are running, and to the second position when motor 50 is stopped.

As shown `in FIGURES 2, a valve 49 may b'e provided in pipe 36 to control the amount of dust extracted from the air flowing to the suction pump 23.

What we claim as our invention and desire to Secure by Letters Patent is:

In a continuous rod cigarette-mal ing machine comprising an air pervious conveyor, first dust extracting means, airow producing means to `draw air through the conveyor and supply the air to the first dust extracting means, means to form a continuous tobacco filler on the conveyor by supplying tobacco to a first length of the conveyor so that the tobacco filler is progressively built up on the conveyor and is conveyed away `from the first length of the conveyor along a second length of the conveyor, said filler forming means comprising a duct extending upwardly to the first length of the conveyor and extending along the first length of the conveyor, whereby the aid which ows through the first length of the conveyor is initially drawn through the duct, means defining an inlet to the duct substantially parallel with the conveyor and of substantially th'e same length as the first length of the conveyor, and means to introduce tobacco into the inlet to the duct to be carried to the conveyor by the air owing through the duct, a trimming device to remove surplus tobacco from the formed ller held to the second length of the conveyor by the air owing therethrough to reduce the depth of the filler, the irnprovement comprising pipe means leading from the first dust extracting means and terminating adjacent to the inlet to the duct to convey the tobacco dust extracted by the first dust extracting means to the duct to introduce the dust into the air flowing through the duct, the pipe means terminating at a location along the duct for the dust to be carried by the air flowing through the duct into the portion of th'e tobacco ller which is retained on the conveyor after the surplus tobacco has been removed by the trimming device, a second dust extracting means, a conduit communicating with said rst dust-extracting means and adapted to convey dust-laden air from the rst to the second dust extracting means, said rst dust-extracting means having an outlet means communicating with said pipe means and with said conduit, and valve means adjustable between a rst position in which the ldust-laden air from the first dust extracting means is directed into the pipe means to be conveyed to the duct, and a second position in which the dust-laden air is directed away from the pipe means and into the conduit to be carried therethrough to the second dust extracting means.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS FOREIGN PATENTS 12/1958 France. 3/ 1960 France. 12/ 1956 Great Britain.

SAMUEL KOREN, Primaly Examiner.

15 JOSEPH s.

REICH, Examiner. 

